I took a few minutes to play with
Google Sets this morning. I gave it "hero", "heroine", "theme", "setting" and
"climax" and then clicked on the large set button. It did very well with
a large list of terms, including "character", "rising action", "conflict" and
"marrator". I tried a list of "knife", "killer", "motive", "clues" and "suspects",
but it was unable to help me there. the group of "outlaw", "sheriff",
"gunfighter", "jail" and "saloon" returned "sheriff", "jail", "gunfighter"
and "coroner". So while it's fun to play with I'm not sure it's quite ready
for regular use yet. I hope they'll keep tweaking it for those of us who
work with words and also love to play with words.

I can't help but wonder how much of the taxpayers' money was used to think up
this little word game. And I wonder how long Homeland Security
personnel think it will be before everyone figures out that both phrases
describe the same basic technology. Do Homeland Security workers think
no one reads, watches TV, listens to the radio or accesses the internet?

They would make far better use of their time and our money by
using correct terms that are already well-known and explaining how the
technology works, and then being clear and precise about the ways in
which they plan to use it. People are not so much afraid of RFID technology
as much as they are of the misuse of that technology. Using covert pet names
is not going to do much to soothe the public's fears, except in the short
run. I can't believe officials wouldn't realize that. Of course, if the
point is to get the technology in place and then use it, and any future
versions of it, in any way they wish, peoples' fears would be very justified.
Either way, I fail to see how reinventing terms promotes security or even the
illusion of security.

A man who helped
save the life of President George H.W. Bush died earlier this month.
Although he dropped out of high school, Andrew Toti went back and got his
diploma and kept on learning and inventing useful things for the rest of
his nearly 90 years of life. Last year Mr. Toti opened the Andrew Toti Museum
of Inventions near Modesto, California. I hope someone will keep the museum
going.

I would be interested to know why he ever quit school in the first place. I
have a feeling a lot of young people who have left school have been some of our
brightest and best, but have not had their needs met by traditional classroom
teaching. Mr. Toti's success sits alongside that of others who left school
early and either completed their education later or used life experience to
make an impact on society. Others among that group:

I don't advocate dropping out of school. I hated sitting in classrooms.
But I knew if I could just get that diploma in my hand it would be a stepping
stone to other things. I also acquired most of my positive learning experiences
outside any classroom. I stayed in school, but I knew I couldn't rely on the
local educators to build my world. I haunted our community library, watched
TV, roamed in nature, viewed films, listened to adults talk, observed adults
at their work, and also corresponded with people in other parts of the world.
I had a hunger for knowledge but I really hated school. If you're reading
this and you're in school and you hate it, please don't just drop out unless
you have a plan and a vision that can't be furthered at all by books and can't
be furthered at all by being in your current geographical location. If you can
possibly stick it out, stay in school, but keep learning about things on your
own. Don't wait for a classroom lecture to turn you on to life. It probably
won't happen. It's up to you to make your life what you want it to be. Find an
adult somewhere who does what you want to do and ask them to be your mentor. Go
to the library, get on the computer, read, ask, observe. If you can't find a
mentor locally, write to one. You can find people easily on the internet now.

I don't care what the politicians or the educational experts tell you. Adults
have been drawn into so much bureaucracy (read: bureau-crazy) in our society
that most teachers have very little time to actually help you with your education.
It's up to you now. You can whine about school or you can show them how smart you
really are by learning what they don't have time to teach you.

The most important thing for us to remember in any formal education is that
we don't teach groups of children anything. We adults may gather children
into groups for our convenience, but someone still has to reach into that
group to spark learning in the mind of one child at a time. Any other approach
wastes their time and ours and is an insult to their intelligence. And when we
tell kids that the only way they can ever be successful in life is by sitting
through twelve (or more) years of formal classroom procedures we are liars.

It's an interesting season on our planet. As I write this, it's the day
most of us know as Easter Sunday, and the day is full of sunrise services
and hunts for colored eggs and cakes shaped like lambs. Easter has always
been a strange holiday to me. As a child, it was the time of year when
kids in the Roman Catholic school system had to endure a long afternoon
of The Stations of the Cross. I always suffered from the incense and
other details that the adults somehow must have thought would lead us all
to salvation. I ended up feeling bewildered and outside the whole
experience. I can still remember counting the stations in my head and
choking on the incense and waiting for the end. When people went wild
for incense in the height of hippiedom I thought they had gone mad. All
the stuff did was close my airways. Incense never had any spiritual
significance for me except feeling the need to be rescued before I choked to death.

I usually had a new hat for Easter and sometimes a new dress and shoes. I
don't know why, but it was considered a rather important thing then to
go shopping for (or have made) a new outfit to wear to church. We colored
eggs and had chick-shaped marshmallow candies and always had to have ham
and German-style coleslaw and potato salad (made with some of the colored
eggs) for late lunch after mass. To this day I have no idea why some
people eat ham on Easter Sunday.

Young children probably don't really understand the symbolism of incense
and the cross and more than they really understand the symbolism of dyed
eggs and big bunnies that leave mysterious baskets full of goodies. I've
been told that abstract thinking doesn't kick in for most children until
the years just prior to puberty. But as adults we have a tremendous capacity
to bring up memories that are associated with strong sensual experiences.
The scent of incense causes my chest muscles to constrict. The smooth touch
of an egg reminds me of my mother smiling and teaching me how to lift the
egg out of the dye. The sight of chocolate-covered egg-shaped marshmallow
candies brings to mind my father and I shopping together to find them in
cartons. Because of past associations, It would be pretty tough for anyone
reading this to convince me that the incense was the correct symbol.

When I hear people discuss the idea of mixing pagan symbols and Christian
symbols I'm confused, because this is exactly what Christ did when meeting
people. He pointed out anything at hand to let people know their lives could be
changed if they would put their future completely into God's hands.

I'm glad that smart adults know that the pleasant experience of an egg hunt
together can instill a lot more spirituality than a sermon on the evils of a
pagan egg hunt. As the saying goes, religion is better caught than taught.

I'm in crunch week to get the April issue of an ezine up, so will put
something brief here for your enjoyment until I can concentrate a bit more on
blog posts. Go enjoy a game or two of online
Jenga while I edit festival and event material. Or, you might want to go
out and
organize an Easter egg hunt. Then again, you might opt to go download
something Easter-related over at
Tucows.

Here's where the U. S.
seniors are living. Santa Cruz County in California, where I
currently live, is losing seniors to the northern counties of the
state where property is cheaper. Some seniors have also run off to
nearby Oregon and Washington for the same reason. And Those Californians
of any age who opt to buy a home in another state may be causing other
Americans to
pay more in other states.

After some $20 million dollars and more than a decade of effort the
Leland Stanford Mansion will likely have a
reopening later this spring. The state hopes to use the property as
a tool in economic development and as a meeting place for dignitaries
from all over the world. I hope they save a few time slots for folks like
me who just want to walk through the old building's interior and inhale
a bit of historic atmosphere.

What an emotional roller coaster we've all been taken on lately with
regard to the Terri Schiavo case. People don't know that Ms. Schiavo
wants to keep eating. They don't know that she does not want to keep
eating. Either she does not have enough brain activity to be able to
express her wishes or she does not have the physical means to express
her wishes. Or perhaps those surrounding her do not have the ability
to understand some limited communication she does give in her present
state. Because she never signed a definitive piece of paper stating
her wishes one way or another she has become the unwitting center of
attention for religious groups, political leaders, medical personnel,
sociologists and just plain folks who realize we each could have easily
been in her position or in that of her family members.

First of all, I'm a little concerned that people are taking sides in the
parents vs. husband area. Some of these folks are pulling up the word
"Christian" to say that the parents should have their way. But Christians
believe that marriage trumps parental authority in adults. So I'd be a
bit cautious before I jumped on this side of such things. The rest of
us can't be certain what any of these folks' motives are, any more than
we can be certain that Ms. Schiavo would sit up and ask for bread if she
could do that. We just don't know.

Some feel it's inhuman to remove the feeding tube that keeps Ms. Schiavo
going. I've heard people say that it would be unethical or even immoral of
medical personnel to remove the tube. Medical advancements have made it possible to keep
a person breathing in situations that would have been unheard of a century
ago. If someone had sustained brain damage or brain injury back then,
would they have been held down and force-fed by mouth, even if they screamed
or choked on the food? I doubt it. Such behavior would have been considered cruel.
Because we have the capability to "force-feed" patients now with the help of
drips and tubes and other devices, the issue has another whole layer added to it.

We had a family member some years ago who was aged and would not eat. Coaxing,
bribing and even scolding produced little results. The family member was offered
liquid nutritional supplements by mouth, but still took in less and less
nourishment as time went on. As far as we know the family member had not
experienced a brain injury and was physically able to put food in their mouth and
swallow and digest it. They just didn't feel like eating. Should we have force-fed them
at that time? If we had disagreed as family members, what would have happened?
Would the courts have stepped in? I don't even like to think about the ramifications
that the Terri Schiavo case will have on many families from now on. State courts, national
legislators and even President Bush have now become involved in this family's
suffering. It's true that those of us now living can make up paperwork to prevent
this kind of thing from happening to our own life if we are ever in a position where
we can't speak for ourselves. But once the political machine has started its massive grinding,
I'm fearful that even that carefully worded piece of paper outlining our
wishes could be set aside down the line if some politician decided to go on
a crusade because he or she felt that our choice was against their particular brand of
ethics or religion. I don't recall a personal medical situation like Ms. Schiavo's ever
having brought so many politicians into action before. If they're willing to step into
this kind of life-and-death arena, it tells me that other issues involving family conflict
and personal freedoms are probably going to be up for grabs in the near future. Politicians
seem to feel they have a lot more entitlement to inject themselves into citizens'
lives these days. Medical advances may have come a long way in the last hundred years,
but human nature is pretty much the same. Forget feeding tubes. What we have to worry
about from now on is force-fed politics.

First, a tip of the Stetson to Glenn at
Instapundit for the information. If the error I keep getting as "too
many connections" is any indication,
Ourmedia is a hit. I was able to read
about the project a bit more
here. This is a volunteer effort, but even music pros are acknowledging
that the record company execs are thinking like dinosaurs. Fiona Apple made an
album that was never released, but
the music is showing up here and there anyway. Is the time coming
when all artists will cut out the middle man and go straight to the fans
with music and other creative works? I love the idea. I don't need record
companies telling me that I should have to listen to whatever music is worthy
of their mass marketing and mass production. There are so many talented artists
just itching to share their work. If the record companies are not going to help
us all enjoy the wide spectrum of sounds and styles being created, I don't feel
a bit sorry that the companies will lose out in the future.

I've been uneasy ever since the news broke about Apple using the courts
to go after web sites who were publishing blog posts that one-upped
Apple's announcements of future products. I'd like to underscore the
ideas expressed in this weeks's
commentary
from Peter Burrows at Mac News World. Apple executives have a chance to
handle this situation with grace and elegance. If they opt instead to
take a bully's stance they run a real risk of coming off as disdainful
of the American press and downright hostile to the American arena of free
speech. I'm fairly certain neither of those latter positions fits in with the
company's mission statement.

And then there's this little gem of an observation:
Scientists Say Life Expectancy to Drop
That last story mentions the fact that the shorter lives of the
up-and-coming generation could keep Social Security solvent for a longer
period of time. Several headlines this week mention the shorter life-span
theory. If people just keeled over two years earlier than expected it
wouldn't be quite such a hard thing to hear about. What's really troubling
is that the chronic health woes connected to obesity may affect this
generation's quality of life a lot more than the length of their life.

Old cigarette machines are being given new life and are being used to
promote art at the same time. Meet
Art'o'mat.

You've seen baseball trading cards, comic trading
cards and others. Now there are
Artist Trading Cards. You can see some examples of this type of art
here,
here
and here.
A variation is the
jam card, which is started by one artist and finished by others in a "round
robin" style. One site provides an
overview and description of the cards. This work, to be authentic, must
be traded or given away, rather than sold. At least, until someone figures out
there's a profit in it. For now, it reminds me of mail art and other exchanges that
go on.

Some folks in the nearby mountain community of Ben Lomond got a
lot more than they bargained for when they tried to keep a backyard
bonfire going. Just in case anyone else out there might have an old gas
tank in a corner, be aware that it does not make safe kindling. It's
a bomb waiting to happen. Popular Mechanic's Auto Clinic touched on the
explosive nature of these things a couple of years ago when someone wanted
to know
how to dispose of a vehicle's old tank.

The Rabid Librarian
led me over to a health-related story from last week. At first glance, the
idea that certain
MRI scans introduce an antidepressant effect in rats sounds like a
great thing. But the electrical activity of the brain is precious stuff.
Should we be comfortable with the fairly common use of something that has
the potential to have this much effect on our thought processes? Even the
basic facts about magnetic resonance imaging tell us that the person undergoing
the procedure
may experience warmth. This may be caused by the contrast dye that is
sometimes used to produce a better image. But it still is an indication that
the test is not a casual glance into the body's inner workings. An MRI disturbs
the natural movement of the body's protons for a short time. It's the body's attempt
to get back to normal function that causes the energy which is measured up by the
machine. It's not nearly as uncomfortable as some tests, but anything that
interrupts the natural flow of cells in the body has the potential to do
harm as well as good.

The University of Wisconsin has been studying what happens to Buddhist
monks when they meditate, and has found that there is
increased gamma-wave activity in those who are practiced in the art of
meditation. Meditation and prayer tend to promote peace of mind and a
sense of connection with the rest of the world that gives us an open
attitude toward helping others. But this usually happens over a period of
time through an individual's free will. The introduction of something artifical, such
as drugs, can produce brain changes that are sudden and dramatic, which is
why the wiser doctors are often reluctant to prescribe mood-altering drugs
to their depressed patients unless other methods have failed. We just don't know
enough about how these things really affect the mind's ability to function. While
MRI scanning is not a drug, we might want to consider that fact that it could be
capable of making the same kinds of sudden changes. Before we cheer that as a
breakthrough, I hope we wait until a lot more evidence is in on what the scan does
to the brain's ability to maintain an overall healthy balance.

Get It Write has a handy
Tip of the Week online. This week's tip looks at the use of "I" and "me". As
recently as yesterday I misused "I" in a written sentence, and didn't catch
the error until the recipient of the sentence copied it back to I in an email.

That last sentence is almost as ridiculous as the one I wrote yesterday.

It's fun to see someone who still has a sense of wonder and a love of
learning as they approach their 90th year of life. Charles Townes
is the
latest recipient of the Templeton Prize. It's a very smart man who
realizes that the more of the universe he discovers, the more there is
to learn.

Last night I had the privilege of listening to an informal report from
someone who went with a group of people to the tsunami-damaged area of
the planet. She brought back photos of children in orphanages and told
of handing out stickers to children who helped the adults clean beaches
of debris. The sand is full of glass shards and pieces of clothing that
have seams full of wet sand. It will take a long time to make the area
attractive to tourists again, and the area depends heavily on tourists
for their economy. I won't steal her thunder here, but I do hope she
gets a chance to tell her story in a more public way. There was tight
security as well-known politicians paid a visit to the area, and she
has some interesting things to say about special provisions made during
that time, and only during that time. She stayed for 15 days and was
exhausted both physically and emotionally, but she says she's going back
for more as soon as she can work it out. Since many of us can't go
personally, I think it's important that any of you who have sent money
know that there are folks still doing a tremendous work over there.

Six Meat Buffet gave a nod to
the Unpopulist, who mentioned
Montage-a-google. Once there, you can do a search for images and then use
those images to create a photo montage. I tried searching for "peppers"
and got back a really colorful blend.

There's a blog for the script writer who wants to know what not to pitch to
Hollywood. The claim is that the postings contain
actual query letters sent to Tinsel Town. Maybe all the execs need to do
is combine two or three of the pitches to end up with a box office bonanza on
their hands.

I never understood the concept of pitching scripts anyway. And I'm betting
that the growing crop of independent film makers is going to put a crimp in
that whole tired dance. Major motion picture studio producers have been seen
as near-royalty, while writers have been looked upon as word-flipping whores who
have to flash some proverbial skin just to get a chance to pitch their ideas. Sales
people are better at pitching than most writers are. Just because we're not all great
at sales doesn't mean we don't have a blockbuster script sitting on our lap. If
producers are looking for the next big thing they might consider getting off
their thrones and hunting down great writers for themselves. The longer they wait
to do that, the higher the chance that an indie will scoop up the best scripts.
It's not only the pitch that counts. It's the vision in the heart of the catcher.

I'm wondering if every grocery store should consider posting something like
the city of Alhambra's
shopping cart etiquette. Yesterday I started to push my cart into an
aisle and had to come to an abrupt stop because a woman was picking out
bottles of spices near the end of the aisle. Her behavior would have been
fine if she hadn't first managed to stop her cart in such a way that it blocked
the middle of the aisle and was set in a half-turn so that it would have taken
a great deal of manipulation to get it to one side or the other of the aisle.
She continued to read labels while I waited and while another person's cart
came to a stop behind me. Now we were jutting out into the area where lines
form to check out. When the spice hunter finally looked up and saw me waiting her
whole body reacted with a giant twitch that almost made her drop the bottle she
finally had in her hand. Her eyes got wider and her jaw dropped as though she'd thought
she was the only one in the store. I said nothing, but smiled and waited for her to move. She
grabbed the cart and yanked it to one side, so I proceeded to move slightly
past her to the items beyong the spices. Just as I reached for a can of
broth she shoved her cart forward and nearly knocked me down. I tried to back up, but
the person who had been waiting behind me was barreling past us both to make up lost
time for her own delay. I was caught in a move that looked like an old disco step. The
spice hunter jerked her head toward me again and mumbled something I couldn't understand
and then gave one more jerk of the cart as if to move on. Then she stopped again. By this
time I was ready to give the command to her to "Sit. Stay." Instead, I pushed my cart to
the next aisle and came back to that aisle once I was sure she had left the area. This
woman was able-bodied, made eye contact with me several times, clearly heard the noises of
other shoppers approaching and had no small children along to distract her. Maybe she'd
just gotten back news and was in her own little universe. I have no explanation for her
frustrating actions.

Exactly one week before the grocery store incident I was in a
Michael's, shopping with a basket instead of a cart. I had gone up and down several aisles
and then noticed a sale on rubber stamps, so I tried to browse in that area. There
were two or three other people shopping in that section and we crossed back and
forth and swapped places without a word and did very well. At the end of the aisle was
a group of five women having a visit. They were not browsing merchandise
and they were not talking about crafts or store items. They were sharing
the good old days and catching up on the latest family news. I looked at the
sale items near them as well as I could, and I tried to make eye contact and place
myself in such a way that let them know I needed to move on to that area. They
turned and looked toward me and never missed a syllable, laughing and talking
as though I was nothing more than part of the display shelf. After a good three
minutes I moved on to the next aisle, where I listened for things to wind down so I
could go back and browse again. They talked for another ten minutes. I browsed the rest
of the store and then came back to finish in that aisle.

I salute the city of Alhambra for its bravery in reminding people that shopping
shouldn't have to be a contact sport and that we shouldn't have to resort to
aisle rage in order to get shoppers to keep an aisle as clear as possible when
they are not on the move. This whole incident did make me recall a trip to
Arizona some years ago, where I found it amusing that grocery stores had signs
instructing folks to check their firearms at the door. I wondered if maybe they
knew something I didn't know. Now I'm fairly certain they knew exactly what
they were doing.

Dan Gillmor and others have already commented on the recent trouble of
the bloggers who revealed information about future products from Apple
Computer. A California judge felt that the sites on which the bloggers
write
don't qualify the writers as journalists. The obvious slippery slope
this type of thing presents has already been noted
on Write Lightning and on many other blogs. Pressure against those who
report and comment in any public forum may be a wedge to crackdown on the
freedom of the average citizen to speak his or her mind without being
interrogated or intimidated. If these things begin to be played out in a
court of law we're going to see a battle over what free speech is in both
written and spoken word.

Although it has no direct bearing on the Apple Computer case, the gag
order that affected comedian Jay Leno might sound funny to some, but it's really
another free speech issue. This man's work is comedy. Because of circumstances
(that he didn't create) that resulted in his being subpoened to testify in a trial, a
court order has
interrupted his ability to do his job.

Do you want a court to tell you what jokes you can listen to? How about what jokes
a comedian can tell his or her audience? Do you want a court to tell you that only some
people should be defended as professional journalists while using a yardstick that
no longer covers the broad scope of present-day journalism? If you don't speak out for
freedom of speech right now, they'll start with the high-profile people. But
someday it will be your turn to answer for you associations, your opinions,
your whereabouts and your knowledge. First Amendment protection was instituted
long before there were online blogs and TV comedy stand-up routines. Let's not
lose the principle of these freedoms now by thinking they're only for someone
special circumstances. Please let your representatives know how you feel, even if you
disagree with my particular take on the matter.

A writer for sfweekly recently allowed some white supremacists the opportunity to
attempt to recruit him into the circle. I'm a little surprised that he got
as far as he did. I read an article by someone else who wonders if
James Mazzone, who was convicted on drug dealing charges and had been
part of Aryan Nations, was some sort of
informant against that particular group. I guess it's not always
paranoia when they really are after you.

A lot of these ideas and stories will be passed around now that there has
been so much speculation surrounding the killings of Judge Joan Lefkow's
husband and mother. Splinter groups and individuals who identify with the
white supremacist movement have made some comments expressing joy at
hearing of the deaths of these two people. That sort of thing doesn't help
the reputation of the cause for those of us looking at these types of
groups from the outside.

White supremacist groups have been blamed for everything from AIDS to
9-11. I rather doubt they actually hold that much real power. But what they
do have the ability to do is appeal to white people who feel they haven't
gotten a fair shake in life. A lonely, unsuccessful white person who feels
disenfranchised by his or her world is an easy mark for someone who encourages
blaming trouble on people who chanced to be born into some other race,
ethnicity or religious community.

Some of these groups, though not all, point to the teachings of the Bible as
a framework for their message and mission. But the Bible doesn't teach white
supremacy. Instead, Bible writers remind us that "all have sinned and come short
of the glory of God". That levels the playing field pretty plainly for any of us
who claim to live by the principles of the the Scriptures.

There have been at least three separate times during my life that I was
directly affected by white supremacists. All were horribly negative experiences
in which their insecurity manifested itself in flattery and then progressed to
bullying. At one point I received unsolicited correspondence that insulted a
beloved member of my extended family and indicated that I'd better get smart
and wise up to how badly the wool was being pulled over my eyes. If these folks
were willing to treat me so badly, knowing me to be what they considered an equal
as a white person, how much more hateful might they become with someone whose race
or other background they thought beneath their own? And how they could think their
petty remarks and bullying would endear me to their cause is still a mystery to me.
Their behavior toward me was cult-like and disgusting. If that's the best standard
they can muster for white supremacy it might explain why they haven't exactly
taken charge of the universe yet.

When human instincts for creativity and friendship are involved,
it's pretty hard for a cold war or decades-old sanctions or any other
political machine to stop progress.
Food producers and distributors, including a growing number of them in
California, are leading the pack to trade with Cuba.
Val Prieto has his Babalu blog,
in which he recounts memories and tries to give understanding to himself and
to those of us who read his words. Artist Ana Mendieta was passed between both
countries and found a way to express her loneliness
through her art. She passed away some time ago, but her art still reaches
out to us.

Even as politicians in
Cuba and the
U.S. attempt to restrict monetary and social interaction between the
two nations there is strong interest on the part of Cubans and Americans
to share the many things that make us more alike than different and to explore
and learn from the details that are different. This is a drive that neither country's
political forces can hold back forever. It's even possible that the sense of
taboo the two countries' leaders have attempted to create may actually be upping
our curiosity and adding fuel to our desire to be closer to our neighbors. It all
makes me think of two sets of panicked parents who don't like each other's
family and form a dirty alliance to try to stomp out the budding romance
between their teenage offspring.

There was an interesting
Wired News story on
PlanetQuest today. The sharing of computer resources seems to be getting
more attention than ever before.
Einstein@Home looks for those elusive gravitational waves Albert Einstein
talked about.
Chess Brain works on getting computers to play chess without humans
making direct moves. There are projects that seek math solutions, map
genome sequences, hunt down cures for disease, and even render images for
animated film sequences. Some even offer to pay for using your computer's
time, though you're not likely to find this a source of big money. Since
more and more of us are connected to the internet all the time this seems
like a great way to share what might otherwise be idle machine time and
resources gone to waste.